Pre-market update:

• Asian markets traded 0.2% lower. 
• European markets are trading 0.1% higher.
• US futures are trading 0.4% higher ahead of the market open. 
  

Economic reports due out (all times are eastern): MBA Purchase Applications (7), EIA Petroleum Status Report (10:30), Janet Yellen Speaks (11:30), FOMC Minutes (2)

Technical Outlook (SPX):

• Rough day for stocks yesterday but it didn’t offer any new perspectives or changed outlooks going forward. 
• Essentially the 50-day moving average held on perfectly. 
• The short-term support rising off of the 4/28 lows held as well. 
• Therefore, despite the selling, no meaningful damage was done to the charts. 
• The real victims are individual charts as days like yesterday has a much more dramatic effect on what would have been quality setups. 
• No real significance anymore behind the 1883 price level as it has been broken now on three separate occasions and yet to lead to a legitimate breakout for the S&P 500. 
• In re: SPY: Don’t be troubled by the heavy volume on down days versus the weak volume on up days – that has been happening for years now. 
• FOMC Minutes today – always a potential game-changer. 
• At all costs, bulls have to make sure that no sell-off results in a close below 1862. 
• VIX rose up to 12.96.
• Bears have shown that despite having favorable market conditions time and time again, that they simply cannot push this market lower over a long period of time. 
• Major milestones like 1900 can often lead to profit-taking as it represents a predefined/psychological level where investors decide to book their gains. 
• Small caps continue to be the market’s weak spot. 
• The Market doesn’t care about the economy nor earnings. That is not what is driving it. The market only cares about what the Fed is doing to keep equities propped up. 

My Opinions & Trades:

• Added one new long position yesterday.
• Closed out GPK yesterday at 10.46 for a 1% loss.
• Closed out BEN yesterday at 54.14 for a 1.5% loss. 
• Will look to add 1-2 new long positions today. 
• Remain long EMC at 25.79, GLW at 20.95, LVS at 73.16.
• 40% Long / 60% Cash
• Join me each day for all my real-time trades and alerts in the SharePlanner Splash Zone

Chart for SPX: